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Tenancy agreements—what you need to know

Housing contracts can be confusing. To help you understand your contract, this page is a general guide to:

  • the main terms you can expect to find in student accommodation agreements
  • a landlord's main legal obligations
  • a tenant's main rights and responsibilities

FAQs

What is a tenancy agreement?

This is legally blinding document that details the terms of your tenancy. Once you sign one, you are bound by its terms and liable for any financial obligations detailed within it until the end of the tenancy. 
Anything that you sign (including a booking or application form) will become a term and condition of your contract. Make sure you read everything before you sign it and take copies away with you once signed.
If you are not satisfied with what is written or want to add to a verbal agreement, you can amend the contract before signing it if all parties agree. Don’t sign if you don’t agree with everything that is written. Either get it changed or find another accommodation.

What happens if you change your mind or are unable to take up the tenancy for some reason? 

Before signing the contract, you risk losing money you’ve already paid, including your booking fee, deposit, and any rent paid in advance.
After signing the contract, you can still be the whole year’s rent, even if you don’t move in.
 

What about guarantors?

Some landlords or agents will ask for a guarantor who will be liable for any financial obligations specified in the contract if you don’t pay your rent. Confirm your family are happy to pay if things go wrong before you sign anything. Check the wording on the guarantor form to ensure that they will not be financially liable for everybody in the property.
 

What are joint contracts?

A joint contract (which is common in shared student housing contracts) means that you are all liable for each other. This is known as ‘joint and several liability’.

It makes you all equally liable for rent, utility bills, and any other charges incurred (e.g. damage / late rent charges). If one of you fails to pay for something, the landlord can chase any or all of you for the outstanding amount or take it out of your deposit. This is why it is important to only live with reliable people who you trust.

You can try to negotiate for an individual contract, which would avoid you being liable for a breach of contract by any of your housemates. This would have only your name on it and your individual rent obligation, rather than the total house for the rent. This is better for you, as it limits your liability, but not all landlords or agents will agree to this.


It is always worth asking, though. If someone changes their mind about taking up or staying in the property, please get advice from our advice team, as there may be implications for you.

 

What should be in your contract?

 

Remedying this can be complicated, but in general, tenants should take steps such as:

  • The landlord/ agent’s name and address
  • Tenant’s name
  • Property address
  • Start and end date of the tenancy
  • How much rent and how and when it will be paid
  • Which bills are included and whether or not they’re capped at a certain amount
  • Deposit information; the amount required and which safeguarding scheme it will be held in
  • Details of any break clause that enable you and/or the landlord to terminate the contract before the end of the fixed term.


Key terms and legal definitions

Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) 
Most private student housing is let under this type of agreement, and
most contracts you see will be ASTs. If students live with the house owner, are in university accommodation, or have another type of contract, their rights may be different. If you see an agreement that does not look like an AST, contact our Information Advice Service.

Landlord / agent contact details
By law, the tenant must be given an address in England or Wales where they can serve notices on the landlord. It doesn't have to be the landlord's home address—it can be a business address or agency. 

If tenants are given an agency's address, they are still entitled to know the landlord's name and address. Tenants can submit a written request for the information, which the agent must provide within 21 days. Students should also ask for landlords' and agents' email addresses and phone numbers. This makes contact easier in the event of a problem or dispute.

Fixed term
Most student contracts are fixed-term, starting and ending on the dates specified in the contract. The tenant is liable for the rent for the full contract duration, even if they move out early (unless the landlord agrees otherwise—see below). This applies even if there are problems with the property (except in very extreme cases).

Ending the agreement
The tenancy may only finish before the end date if the tenant and landlord
both agree. It's best to get this in writing. Landlords will usually only agree if a replacement tenant is found. If the landlord wants to end the tenancy, they must use the correct legal procedures. For an AST, the landlord has to serve a notice and get a court order to evict the tenant(s) – even if there are rent arrears or other breaches of tenancy.

Joint liability
Joint contracts usually contain all tenants' names and signatures. Rent is often expressed as a total figure for the property rather than individual amounts per person. All joint tenants are legally viewed as one person and are equally liable for any unpaid rent or damage to the property. 

You might see the phrase "joint and severally liable" or "jointly and individually liable." This means any tenant can be pursued for outstanding rent and damage costs, even if they have paid their share of the total rent or did not cause the damage. E.g. Sam and Jo sign a joint contract, and the rent is £250 per month each (£500 total). If Jo misses a £250 payment, the landlord can ask Sam to pay.

Individual liability
If each tenant has a separate agreement with the landlord, they are only responsible for their share of the rent. So, in our previous example, Sam would not have to pay Jo's arrears. 

Individual tenants would be liable for any damage to their room. The landlord can make a charge for damage in communal areas but should first try to find out who was responsible. Note: most tenancy agreements for shared houses are joint liability agreements.

Lead Tenant
One student may need to be nominated as the lead tenant. This is a purely administrative role and does not mean they have greater liability than any other tenant.

Guarantors
A guarantor agrees to cover any costs, including rent and damages, if the tenant(s) cannot pay. It is vital that prospective guarantors check the contract and guarantor forms before anyone signs the contract. If a guarantor refuses to sign the form after a student has signed the contract, this can cause significant problems, such as landlords withholding keys.

For joint tenancies, guarantors might be held liable for the rent of any of the joint tenants (E.g. Sam's mum might have to pay Jo's rent arrears). Tenants should therefore request that guarantors sign a form limiting their liability to an individual person's share of the total costs.

Here is our suggested wording for guarantor agreements, which you're welcome to use:

This guarantor agreement is limited to cover the share of rent owed by __________ [INSERT TENANT'S NAME]. The total liability is limited to £__________[INSERT FIGURE], 

which is equal to______ [INSERT PERCENTAGE. e.g. 25% for a four-bedroom house, 50% for a two-bedroom house] of the total rent for the property. The guarantor accepts no liability for rent owed or any other loss suffered by the landlord/agent as a result of any actions by any other tenant.

Some landlords ask for alternative arrangements (e.g. more rent in advance or a larger deposit) if an international student can't provide a UK-based guarantor. Any such arrangements should be clearly stated in the contract. There are plenty of landlords who don't ask for guarantors.

Deposit
Deposits are taken from tenants at the start of the contract to cover the cost of potential property damage or unpaid rent/charges at the end of the tenancy. They remain the tenant's money, and landlords should only deduct from them if they have clear evidence to support their claim. Deposits can be used to pay for damages that result from the tenant not fulfilling their obligations, such as sink blockages caused by putting fats or rice down the sink, problems with the garden, or using Blutak or Sellotape on walls. 

To avoid losing your deposit, check your contractual obligations and ensure you understand how to avoid deductions. Deductions should not be made for fair wear and tear, which is any deterioration of the property or its contents through normal daily use.

Tenancy Deposit Protection Schemes
By law, deposits taken for an AST must be protected in a tenancy deposit scheme. There are three different schemes, and your agent or landlord can choose which one they use. These schemes safeguard your money and can provide a resolution service if there are any disputes at the end of the tenancy.

Landlords must protect the deposit within 30 days of receiving it and notify the tenants which scheme the deposit is protected with and information about how it operates. If they don't, tenants can be entitled to compensation of up to three times the deposit amount. You can check if your deposit is protected on this website.
 
House in Multiple Occupation (HMO)
If your property houses five or more people over three or more floors, your landlord must obtain a HMO license from the council. It is a criminal offence for landlords not to have this license. You should not sign any paperwork until they have seen a copy of this licence or checked the online public register for it (we have discovered some landlords who have been operating illegally by doing this).

Gas Safety Certificates
By law, landlords must provide a current gas safety certificate showing that all gas appliances have been checked by a registered person. These certificates must be renewed annually You should ask to see it when
you view a property.

Energy Performance Certificates
It's now the law for landlords to show you a property's Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) free of charge when you attend a viewing. This six-page document gives you an idea of how energy efficient the property is and what it may cost to heat.

Quiet enjoyment
This is an implied term that states the tenant has the right to undisturbed use and enjoyment of the property, including the right to exclude others from the premises, the right to peace, quiet and clean surroundings, and access to basic services like heat and hot water.

24 hours’ notice
As part of the right to quiet enjoyment of the property, tenants are entitled to receive notification of the date, time, and purpose of a visit by the landlord or any of the landlord's colleagues or staff 24 hours in advance. The only exception is emergencies or similar situations where it's not possible or practical to give 24 hours’ notice.

Repairs
By law, the landlord is responsible for maintaining and fixing the property's structure and ensuring the water, gas, sewerage, and electricity installations are in good working order. Contracts may give the landlord extra obligations but cannot remove these legal minimums.

Not all contracts specify the landlord's repairing obligations but may refer to "section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985" instead.

Taking care of the property
Tenants are required to take reasonable care of the property and carry out small jobs listed in their contract (e.g. changing light bulbs, unblocking sinks, etc.) Failure to do so can result in deposit deductions or money claims by the landlord.

Reporting damages
Tenants must promptly report all damages and breakages that need repair to their landlord to ensure any problems don't escalate. However, not all breakages will be the landlord's responsibility to fix, and tenants may have to pay for any breakages they cause that aren't the result of normal daily living.

Water/pipes
Contracts will often state that tenants are responsible for turning off the water supply in the winter to prevent the pipes from freezing and bursting if they leave the property for an extended period (e.g. return to their home address during the winter break). Any damage caused by a failure to do this could result in costly repair charges being passed on to the tenant.

Damp, mould, and condensation
Mould can sometimes be caused by condensation due to the tenant's
lifestyle. Preventing mould in a property, or ensuring mould problems do not escalate, is normally the tenant's responsibility unless an underlying structural problem in the building is causing it.

Remedying this can be complicated, but in general, tenants should take steps such as:
 

  • keeping the bathroom door shut during and after a bath or shower
  • keeping large items away from walls
  • avoiding drying clothes in a room with no ventilation
  • closing the kitchen door and opening a window or using an extractor fan when cooking
  • covering pans when boiling
  • maintaining low constant heating and increasing it as and when required
  • ensuring the landlord is aware of any heating problems that could allow damp or condensation to linger
     

Rent days
Rent is payable on the days specified in the contract. Charges for late payments may be incurred by the tenant (these should be clearly stated in your agreement).

Utilities
If utility bills are included in your rent, the landlord is responsible for paying the supplier, and their name should appear on the bills instead of yours. If utilities aren't included in your rent, it's the tenants' responsibility to pay suppliers, and their name(s) should be on the bill. 

Whether bills are included or not, you should take meter readings when you first move in so you are not charged for the previous tenant's utility usage.

TV Licence
Unless this is included in your rent, you are responsible for obtaining a TV
licence if there is a television in the property, even if it belongs to the landlord.

Council Tax
Tenants of the property, not the landlord, are liable for council tax. Students are entitled to a council tax exemption. If there is only one non-student in a property with students, they can receive a 25% discount (student tenants remain exempt in this situation).

Insurance
The landlord will have property insurance to cover any damage to the property. Unless specified in your contract, the landlord does not have to provide contents insurance that covers your possessions. You should purchase your own contents insurance policy to cover your items in the event of theft or damage.